An epic night with the blues...

I love the blues. I can say this is my favorite genre of music. EVERY style of music out there is influenced by the blues. I never thought I really had a favorite type of music because I just honestly love music so much, but if I had to pick a favorite - it's the blues. Last night was a brilliant reminder why. Buddy Guy and Johnny Lang. Two AMAZING artists. I had seen that they were playing together at the Grove in Anaheim the day before the brain incident. Maybe that's what caused it - I got so excited it blew my mind. Literally. I had emailed my dad saying "We have to go" and we had planned on it but the universe decided to scare the shit out of me and my family instead. About week 2 into my recovery I had remembered this concert. I still wasn’t able to do this myself, so I hovered over my mother as I walked her through purchasing tickets for me, my dad and my brother for dad's father’s day surprise. My head pounding, my back screaming, my mom hollering at me to go back to bed but I wanted to make sure we got tickets. Sure enough all the dinner w/show was sold out and a lot of the sections already gone. Luckily I got us a threesome and crawled back to bed. Well last night was the big night. I knew I would be recovered by now (cut it close though!) and the three of us headed out bursting with excitement. We had a fantastic dinner at Prime Cut Cafe, had drinks and laughs and the boys ogled our adorable waitress and off we went. Our table was a bit off to the side but still good seats. I do love the Grove - I don’t think there really is a bad seat in that place. We had fun table mates and after a long battle of laughs and attempts we finally got a sort of successful self-portrait which you see below and the lights dimmed. Out comes Johnny Lang. This kid was a teen when BB King introduced him onto the blues scene. He's still a kid but looks a bit more grown up since we saw him last. Shane was floored since he hadn’t seen him since Doheny Blues a few years ago. This was the third time Dad and I have seen him. And he did not disappoint. He is the most expressionable guitarist ever. He seriously looks like he is in horrible pain or having an orgasm the entire time he plays. He feels every single note that comes out of that guitar. One of the many things I love about this kid is you feel what he is feeling right along with him. The emotion and the soul pour out of him and into you as an audience. He can silence the crowd. There will be a moment when he is just singing along with his guitar - singing his licks! The crowd is silent taking in every note with him. He brought me to tears during one of my favorite numbers. He also has a fantastic band behind him. They play together perfectly and follow his lead. Johnny Lang's set was one of the most emotional for me I've had in a while. My breath was taken away, my soul filled with his voice and guitar. Perfection. It was seriously perfection. Standing O of course and I was actually slightly exhausted from watching him. Lights came up and we chatted as we waited for Buddy to set up. Lights dim again and here comes the legend. Mr. Buddy Guy. I absolutely love watching this man perform. He's happy, he's having a blast, he's a dirty old man, he's funny, and he’s everything a blues artist should be. He's 76 years young as he tells you in one of his songs and he tears up that guitar that no one’s business. He stops in the middle of songs sometimes to "tell you sumthin". Then a story rolls off his giggling tongue. Turns music. Turns blues. The band follows right along. At one point he walks off stage but you still hear him playing and a few minutes later he appears in the crowd. He does this a lot in his shows and the crowd goes wild trying to catch a glimpse of him and snap pictures as he walks through playing and singing. He does shoot past us pretty close so I catch a quick snap of him. Buddy Guy also has a phenomenal band. His keyboardist is one of my favorite performers playing those keys like a lover. Later in his set he introduces this kid. 13 years old that he heard play once and thought he was listening to himself. Out walks this shaggy haired boy who reminds me of my godson who promptly TEARS IT UP!!!!! This kid is a young Eric Clapton and is going to be a star. Travis or Taylor Quinn was his name I think. Damn. Johnny Lang was brought back out and the three of them had a guitar off. I was dying. I cannot express to you how much I love to hear people tear up that guitar!!!! He finished up one of the best blues sets I've seen and I again felt drained. So happy and exhausted! Blues music bores into your body bringing you along for the ride as you follow the artists through their performances. It's as if you are up there playing right alongside of them. You feel it. You love it. You become it. Every single time I am on my way to one of these shows I think "There's no way they can top the last time I saw them" and then they do. Every single time. I'm blown away. Every single time. Last night was no different. An epic night of blues with two of my favorite men. I'm still smiling this morning and hearing their songs in my head. If you have never seen the blues - get off your ass now and get out there and experience this before you die. You won’t regret it, I promise you that. Thank you Johnny Lang and Buddy Guy and all of your band mates for giving me yet another fantastic amazing night of music.